End users of Web task, legacy applications or Windows (Windows is a registered trade mark of Microsoft Corporation, Redmond Wash.) based operating systems create few automated processes, that is a series of steps that a user desires to execute on a computer (often at pre-defined time or with a click of a button or a mouse). These software processes could be of any type and for any purpose, e.g., business, IT, or requirements to validate software behavior, etc. In some instances, the user desires to create a task, assign properties to the task and to run the task on a local or a remote computer. Prior art technologies require a user to install a resident application or operating system modification to software on each remote computer it desires to run such a process, which is often found to be time consuming, expensive and impractical for a large number of users.
Automation Anywhere found at www.automationanywhere.com fulfils a need to create software processes locally and run on the local machine or at remote locations. Such activities are motivated for example by requirements to test large numbers of remote sites following implementation of a change in existing software, routinely monitor a remote computer from a central location, whereby the remote location on a scheduled basis runs certain software jobs and reports back to the central location, remotely generating reports and feeding them back to the central location and performing repetitive tasks such as scanning email messages for specific content. Such applications may even extend to applications for entering data into a variety of systems such as inventory or health care systems, checking inventory and reordering, reminding individuals of their upcoming appointments, installing new operating systems via patch on remote computers, monitoring data centers, or underperforming hardware, automating a QA process. For example QA software specialists often discover problems with software, but the developers subsequently cannot reproduce the problem in their computing environments. Although current technology can create the failed test case and export it as an executable the bug attached, this technology is found lacking for more complex routines that may require loop nesting and the provision of variable fields in commands that are either unknown or not established until run time. Therefore a major shortcoming of software process created on one computer and for purposes of running it on another computer is the lack of features that allow simple usability and reliable portability. Helpful in establishing a quick, reliable and low cost portability system that satisfactory drops and drags tasks coupled with portability to furnish solutions to remote execution of locally created processes is desirable, however a constant need arises to improve on the usability of such systems.